Today is World Autism Awareness Day!

TODAY THE UNITED NATIONS and Autism Syndrome Disorder (ASD) organizations around the world are observing the first World Autism Awareness Day. My 21 year old son is a high functioning autistic man. I've been busy with CNN.com all morning doing stories. As you know it is Autism 24/7 on the network today.

Why would a community of nations usually neck-deep in issues relating to peace, poverty and pollution, among other grievous concerns, want to drum up international attention for a disability like ASD?

The answer is simple. ASD has become a global epidemic.

One T-shirt designed by an autism support group sums it up succinctly: “10 years ago: 1 in 10,000; 5 years ago: 1 in 1,000; Today: 1 in 150; Scared yet?”

The conservative estimate is there are 35 million people with autism in the world. There is hardly anyone who does not know a family with a child with ASD.

“Every 20 minutes a family embarks on this terrible journey,” says parent Katie Wright in her foreword to the book “Changing the Course of Autism: A Scientific Approach for Parents and Physicians” by Brian Jepson, M.D., with Jane Johnson.

Initiated by Qatar last December and approved by the UN General Assembly for observance every year on April 2, the resolution seeks to promote early diagnosis, early intervention and necessary services for individuals with ASD.

Banging on doors

All over the world, parents of children with ASD are, as Wright puts it, “banging on the doors of pediatricians and pediatric gastroenterologists, looking for answers and finding none ... This situation is shameful.”

Finding a good doctor who specializes in treating autism is, seriously, like looking for a needle in a haystack.

“Many physicians rely solely on the practice patterns of others and never read the literature themselves,” Jepson notes. “Some of what they know is outdated, and some of what they’ve been taught may be inaccurate and misleading.”

Jepson, board-certified in emergency medicine, switched his attention to the study and treatment of autism after his second son was diagnosed with ASD. He is now medical services director at Thoughtful House Center for Children in Austin, Texas.

No rest for parents

For the treatment of their children with ASD, parents should not rest until they find a specialist who networks with other ASD doctors, attends ASD conferences, reads up on research and accepts parental input.

The book says there is evidence in medical studies that autism is an epidemic; that it is a medical disease, not a psychological disorder; and that it affects other body organ systems besides the brain. The best news, however, is that autism is treatable, and if intervention is given in the earliest years, a child can get better.

Correct nutrition

There is no fast formula for treatment but the first thing that is usually prescribed is correct nutrition.

“Replace what the child is missing, remove what is causing harm, and break the inflammatory cycle,” Jepson writes. “Changing the diet is probably the most difficult thing that parents are asked to do, but the improvements are often immediate.”

The nutrition guide that parents must follow for their children with ASD involves adding and subtracting.

Without this kind of intervention, their kids will continue to suffer by eating day after day only two or three kinds of food—usually the most harmful to them.

What to add? Jepson recommends correcting nutritional deficiencies through vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. The book has 21 pages of these supplements.

Gluten-free diet

What to subtract? Parents recommend taking away food with dairy and wheat as well as oats. The diet is known as the gluten-free/casein-free diet, or GF/CF for short.

Two years ago, none of the GF/CF foods available to parents abroad could be purchased here. Thanks to the advocacy of parents of children with ASD, reputable health store chain Healthy Options now has sections for gluten-free and lactose-free foods, as well as books such as Jepson’s.

The hardest thing for parents to deny any child is cookies because, well, everybody loves cookies. To their relief, a variety of gluten-free snacks, as well as cereals and pastas, are now on the shelves of Healthy Options, which is found in most major malls. The store also carries casein-free milk and chocolate drinks (no cows’ milk but milk substitutes with as much calcium).

Pan de sal, baked fresh with imported GF/CF flour and containing no yeast, preservatives, or artificial flavorings is now available at Free Living (tels. 6313005 and 0917-7374489).

Treatment not a sprint

If your child eats nothing but chicken, Free Living carries nuggets, hotdogs, tocino and longganisa made of chicken. All their products are made in a kitchen that is dedicated to preparing and cooking only GF/CF products so there is no contamination.

One important reminder to parents: Do not try to remove food that is not gluten-free and casein-free all at once and refrain from giving several kinds of vitamins and nutrients all at once.

Otherwise, it will be hard to tell which worked or adversely affected their child, says Jepson. Wait several days or weeks before introducing a new food or treatment.

“Remember that the treatment of autism is like a marathon, not a sprint,” he cautions. The management of a chronic disease like ASD is usually long term. Some children respond immediately to treatment, others take longer.

But here’s the good news: There is no cut-off age for treatment.

“Never give up hope, at any age,” Jepson says. “The more scientists and physicians learn about autism, the more effective the treatments will become.”

From Kemi to you.......Our Story

Eni was born in 1987 and it was in 1990 that I first noticed something wrong with my child. He never talked. He made the baby noises and all but right after he got the MMR shots, he stopped every noise. His behavior changed, he was mute and pointed to things he wanted. I was devastated and my partner and I would have so many arguments on how to discipline him especially when he would have tantrums and throw things all over the house. My partner would want to spank and I would refuse. There was something much more happening to Eni we didn't know. I had just graduated from Pharmacy school in 1988 and it seriously affected my job as babysitters would decline to take him citing the other kid's safety and other crappy excuses. I would get calls at work to come and pick up my child in SCHOOL! Some of the schools could not even manage them in those days. I would constantly fight with the schools who would end up calling social services who in turn take my son away into foster care for extended periods citing that I am mentally frustrated and it could harm him.

I would spend thousands of dollars to hire lawyers to get my son back. I was fired at my first job in pharmacy after 6 months because I had to leave so many times to get my son. How does a Pharmacist leave in the middle of filling prescritions? You had to close up till the relief pharmacist arrives. One day, my boss said to me "I realize what you are going thru with your son....we all have families and families come first. Go take care of him. We'll call you if we need you".....That was 1990. They haven't called me till today in 2007. I was let go! I later kept my next pharmacy job for 16 years at CVS who acomodated me well. Meanwhile they were 12 hour days so that I could only work 3 days a week making 36 hours. I hired Ms Pat an old black woman to come and sit in my home with Eni after school.

I decided to go for a less stressful career and I registered in the Broadcasting Institute of Maryland as a News Major as well as Goucher College school of Public Relations for PR. People thought I was stupid taking up a double major. I would go to school every night while Ms Pat watched Eni and his brother Oyin. Broadcasting gave me the flexibility I needed and that explains all my freelance work on this blog. It was just to pay the bills and take care of my son. At one point, the social services did not take my son away any more, but they took his brothers. Eni would kick, bite and beat me and his siblings. The Baltimore County police accused the social services of completely ignoring "this woman's needs" and Officer Clay Benton and Darryl Kelly went to court screaming at the caseworkers in the courtroom in my pursuit of getting my younger sons back. The Judge was so confused. Judge Bollinger knew NOTHING about autism. Officer Benton was the father of an autistic boy Connor which nobody knew on that court day. Also present was Kimberly Curtis of the Autism society of America who testified for me. Her husband Kenny Curtis was a local celebrity and local Fox-45 kids TV personality who had an autistic kid too. Ken's now at XM Kids radio. After 15 years of hell, I got KJ and Oyin back. I went thru many parental classes and absurd case plans. The U.S system can so much destroy you, there are limited or no services in some states. Some states are better for older autistics, some for younger. This explains my moving around. 6 years in Philadelphia (My pharmacy college days), 15 years in Baltimore and 3 years in Atlanta.

Things got worse in Georgia. KJ was taken away again for safety reasons as Eni was constantly agitated when he heard loud noises. When you yell at him, he would go nuts. Eni eventually went to a residential institution for a year and I got KJ back after 2 Years in foster care. 2 YEARS! They purposely suffered me thru several ridiculous case plans and racism played a big part there in the deep south. I started a movement against Georgia Social Services and headed to the State House and United States Congress to testify about how the state destroy autistic families. The US Congressional team imposed a $130,000 fine on Georgia for mismanaging federal money (stashing children wrongly taken away in foster care) and destroying families. Many families came out after seeing my story on several local news channels and story after story came out.

Members of the Georgia State Senate said they did not know many of us had our kids taken away or their siblings. I changed the laws. I made a difference in the society, something I said last week at the parents forum in Toronto for parents of disabled adults. Don't wait for Tory and McGuinty, do what you have to do FOR YOUR CHILD! We are getting older and still have to remember who will care for them when we become elderly? In my time spent in the U.S, I spent $85,345 on attorney fees constantly battling the system to let my family be a family. Eni was mute till 9 years old when he finally talked. He ended up in Special Education till he got to high school in Georgia. Autistic people do not relate well with others but because he was so cute (LOL), the girls embraced him and all his friends are female. Eni only has one male friend "Junior." The autism factor of communicating and relating to others plays a significant role here. He does not relate to young adult males at all! After 23 years we left the U.S and returned to Nigeria in January 2006. I literarily had to protect my own children from their own government.

I began working at Radio Nigeria and someone at the Canadian embassy told me about Canada and services for older autistic people. Eni really had nothing back home and his frustration levels got worse. After contacting agencies like JVS Toronto, Community Living Toronto, Ontario Disability Support Program, I got Eni into his own independent shelter, where he cooks his own meals, goes to job training daily and is preparing to get his first job in Canada. He has only worked in McDonalds in the States cleaning tables and taking trash out but he wants more.....more specialized skilled good paying jobs and that is why JVS is there for him. We arrived in Toronto June 6th 2007 and only for me to see two politicians battling about Autism on TV. John Tory says Dalton Mcguinty failed in his promise to parents of autistic children. Parents must look into what is best for THEIR OWN children. My story is worse than I have here but the rest belongs in a BOOK. I want to write about it but time is the problem. In my leaving full time jobs in 2004, I decided to take on this fangled thing called the world wide web and set up a home office reading and writing articles freelancing and finally started Keminications in Atlanta. I would breeze thru TV and radio channels and listen to all kinds on media news and gossip as well as read endless magazines, blogs and links on the web and Keminications was born. Look at all the links I bring you daily. It takes time to read and do my story selection. I sold ads on the site, made a living and found my own niche. Though I'm not selling ads yet on this Canadian version, I want to use this site to network with other media professionals and the public. I want people to enjoy coming here daily!

Lastly autistic individuals can do extraordinary things we may not be able to do as a result of the side of the brain that's too fast. Eni cannot tie shoes, so all his shoes are velcro. His fine motor function is delayed. It can take him 2 hours to put a pillowcase in a pillow and he cannot button a winter coat properly....BUT, he can program MS DOS which most of us can't. Some kids don't even know that operating system and were born in the "Windows XP" era. He can master 50-100 phone numbers and tell you over and over. He is OBSESSED with transit systems and has mastered transit systems all over the WORLD. London's Tube, MARTA-Atlanta, MTA-Maryland, SEPTA-Philadelphia and TTC-Toronto. Eni can tell you how to get from point A to B in Toronto. He can tell you how to get from point A to B in Chicago without ever being to Chicago before. He wants to work for the TTC, washing buses and trains. In Baltimore, he would ride around the buses all day and when he gets to the last stop, he will take a bag and pick up all the trash in the bus and give the bag to the drivers who would tell him..."you didn't have to but thanks." He is addicted to cleaning too! He played all the early video games in the 90's to the END! When you get to the end of a video game, do you know that the company gives you your money back? I collected so much money from Sega, Nintendo and Sony. It's like getting the games for free! The folks at JVS have put the TTC in mind when job placement begins for Eni. Canada has done a lot for me and Eni. My 16 year old Oyin is still in America with his dad attending high school as we want him to finish there. He is an aspiring movie director and his works have been published on the American Film Institute's website. His friends on MySpace are Spike Lee, Sean Penn, Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Frances Ford Coppola and more. Oyin wants to attend a Toronto Film school and was watching all the TIFF activities closely but most importantly wants to be closer to Eni.

Eni is finally settled and KJ is in elementary school and on this blog constantly. It has affected his siblings, imagine the 2 years KJ lived with strangers. The foster mom was discovered to be a 3-time convicted felon in New York and was working for the State of Georgia as a foster mom. She was caught shoplifting with my kid in tow...IMAGINE! The racist caseworker Susan Winter said..."We can't use that against her." I lashed out and finally he was moved to another foster home. Winter was eventually fired! I am hoping to get my Canadian Pharmacist license soon and also find a part time reporter gig doing any beat in Print, On-air or Editorial. If you know any media houses or organization that would like me to come and speak about raising an older autistic child or want to do a special, I would be glad. Celebrities all over America are now bringing out the plight. The doctor on the show last night with Larry King treats Jenny's son and he has an autistic child too. My last attorney in the States asked me if he could use my case as a case study and I replied YES! He told me how the media is now focusing more on Autism since I left. You have to help other Canadians get the services they deserve. Above is a 2003 picture with my sons, Eni, Oyin and KJ now 20+, 15+ and 6+ almost all 21, 16 and 7 in November 2007. Also Eni at his first job, McDonalds in the States and at church with me. More on Eni's personality profile below. DON'T FORGET TO VISIT MY AUTISM BLOG ON SWIMMING SAFETY! Canada has done a lot for my son in only 4 months! Thank you Canada! My life is back!!!!!

A tribute to my son Eni.......

My sons in 2003, KJ, Eni and Oyin

Eni and KJ in 2004

Yes! He attended his Prom in June 2006 even though he was labeled"Special Ed kid"

Eni and brother Oyin in 2002

Eni on his 16th birthday

Eni at 9 years old with his then 5 year old brother Oyin playing with a baby gator and snake at Gatorworld, Florida in 1995

Eni just after being diagnosed of autism in 1992

Enitan Robert who has given me permission (Privacy: He's over 18 now) to tell his story to you is planning to work with former CNN personality Daryn Kagan to tell "his" story. Daryn is writing a book and wants to hear about people's journeys in life and stories that make a difference. Please visit Daryn's website She also tells people's stories on her website weekly. I simply love Daryn's work!

• Eni's MySpace website: See his friends, interaction and conversation. He never has much to say. Most of that has to do with the communications disability aspect. Though he speaks fluently now and reads/writes, we will never forget the 6 year silence. He was mute from 3-9 years old. He also likes video games and cartoon templates. Any retro cartoon like Bugs, Jetsons, Sonic the hedgehog etc and he changes his templates daily. He typed everything himself. Like I said earlier, he gets to the end of these video games and Sega used to give us our money back. Social interaction, something autistic people have a hard time doing. My son is now SOCIAL NETWORKING ON MYSPACE!!!!
• What I want you to pay attention to are the conversations and comments on there. The girls are either wished "Happy Birthday" or greeted. He uses one liners. All those girls are former classmates at High school. NOT one of them is a stranger on MySpace......so the social interaction is still limited.......a characteristic of Autism.
  

THANK YOU KEMINICATIONS READERS FOR READING MY STORY! CONTACT ME VIA E-MAIL (MEDIAKEMI@ROGERS.COM) OR CALL ME AT 647-344-5390 ON MY OFFICE LINE IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR YOU WOULD LIKE ME TO VOLUNTEER FOR AN APPEARANCE OR TALK AT ANY MEDIA SETTING.

Celebrities and Autism.........Resources for us all!

This is my uncle Robert Wright, former President of NBC Universal. Bob's grandson is autistic and Bob and aunt Suzanne Wright was caught by surprise. They had to get educated quickly. They started "Autism Speaks" a foundation full of resources. As NBC President, Bob did a special week long series where he and Suzanne came on the "Today Show" to talk about autism, MSNBC had a special, Dateline NBC had a special and also I was interviewed on CNBC the financial channel on a story which dealt with financial futures of autistic adults, jobs, rent, bank accounts, transportation etc. The week long special in 2005 was FANTASTIC. I want to see BNN in Canada do something like this. Know someone over there at BNN? Contact me please since I'm an advocate for grown autistic kids. I want them to succeed. Above is Bob and Suzanne and I at the Broadcast Foundation awards in 2003.

You remember Tisha Campbell from the sitcom "Martin" and her husband Actor Duane Martin, also a fairly big celebrity. Rumors have been swirling about their marriage being stressed out, him being gay and also their battling with their son's autism. Many have said the stress of autism is crumbling their marriage. They spoke to Essence magazine on the rumors about their divorce.

Dan Marino, a former football player and his wife Lynley Marino are very vocal in autism funding and awareness. They too have a son who is autistic. They have visited and spoke at Capitol Hill and have a foundation too for resources. One thing I love about the Marino's foundation is the swimming certification, a mystery that has baffled several experts on why autistic children are drawn to water. SEVERAL HAVE DROWNED! This is one of the focus points on my autism blog.

Doug Flutie yet another football player has a foundation for autism awareness as his son Doug Jr is autistic. Awareness is very important to Doug and helping to get information and locate resources.

Holly Robinson Peete and ok, yet another former footballer Rodney Peete has an autistic son who is also the twin of a non-autistic daughter. At one point, I used to think football had to do with autism. They started the Hollyrod Foundation for autism and Parkinson disease awareness. Rodney talks to men out there to educate them on "being a man" and helping their children and their mothers hang in there. Many mothers of autistic children are single moms today due to the stresses of autism. My son KJ's dad left because as he said, "I cannot deal with your older son's problems."

Finally, Jenny McCarthy wants you to visit Stan Kurtz's website about recovery from autism and also buy her book Louder Than Words. The People magazine is on stands now till the end of this week September 28th 2007. I am planning to share my story with Jenny and contacting her Manager because she said something on Larry King last night when Larry asked her what happens to these kids when they grow up? She replied...." I don't know, I have never seen a grown autistic person before." She needs to be prepared and read my blog!

Celebrities Jenny McCarthy and Holly Robinson talk about Autism on Larry King.

It was an ovewhelming night for me as always when I see Autism being discussed. I had seen Jenny McCarthy and Holly Robinson Peete on Oprah talking about the same thing just 2 weeks ago but on Larry you know that things are always different. Jenny is featured in the latest issue of People magazine and on the cover. Jenny McCarthy who just wrote a book about the fight to save her son "Louder than words" talked about day to day life and Holly talked about the foundation she and her husband founded, Hollyrod which deals with Parkinson's and Autism. One of their twins is autistic. Overwhelming because I have suffered through the stresses and joys of autism myself. Those of you who read this blog know I have experienced a lot of things, met a lot of people and did so much in my life. Nothing prepared me for this one. My oldest is almost 21 and was diagnosed of Autism at 5 years old. We never got early intervention in 1987-90 but struggled through it. He is very high functioning. I am a single mother today and so is Jenny. Holly talked about how her husband and former football player Rodney Peete talks to men about how to cope and deal with this problem as many of us women have felt the men were not "man" enough to deal with it, so they leave. One thing that she said which is known to be true is that it strains relationships, it causes a 90% divorce rate and it can ruin your life. This is part of my story. My oldest son is Autistic. You will see my story later. Other celebrities that have autistic children and have bought the cause out are going to be detailed out in this story too. Dan Marino, Doug Flutie, Tisha Campbell, Former NBC Universal President Bob Wright and his wife Suzanne.

Strange things for the media: Urban legends about Autism?

Many parents including me claim that after our children took their MMR shots our children stopped talking and functioning. This is the Measles, Mumps and Rubella vaccine manufactured by Eli Lily. We haven't been able to sue till today! We investigated why the U.S government was protecting Eli Lily and that famous Homeland Security bill that was slipped in at NIGHT in congress protecting the U.S army and drug company. Even super blogger Adriana Huffington had her own version of this sneaky bill done at night when nobody could ever see it. Many members of congress did not even KNOW there was such a bill!

1. Elizabethtown, New Jersey. A town in America where all the kids are autistic. Pregnant moms are moving out with panic! The CDC (Center for disease control) and EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) have been there researching the town's water supply, creeks and more trying to find out the link here. ABC news did a special here and still no answers.....
2. Silicone Valley, California and the "Geek Syndrome." Many children of computer manufacturing workers are surging with autism. Is this a mathematical and tech gene or are the chemicals used to put our PC's together toxic? Still no answers but the rate of autism clinics in Silicone Valley have gone up. Let's hope nobody is trying to "cash" in on the panic as there is an autism clinic and school at every corner. It looks like renaming the area Autism, USA
   
3. Even I couldn't help the football syndrome as former NFL footballers Doug Flutie, Rodney Peete and Dan Marino all had autistic kids. There is no link with the sport.

Larry King talks about Autism on Thursday with genius basketball player.

The heartbreak ...and hope of autism. Jason "J-Mac" McElwain inspired the world with his incredible shot-making at a high school basketball game. Larry talks to the teen and others about the disorder. Holly Robinson Peete, Doug Flutie and Toni Braxton join the discussion to bust myths and present breakthroughs. It's an uplifting hour with those who know! My son is going to be 21 this week and is autistic but very high functioning. He gets to move to his apartment this week. A beautiful one bedroom. He started a job too. I had a whole series on that last fall. Click "older posts" at the bottom and keep clicking it and you will read my story.